E-Church: The double-edged sword

Buoyed by the army of waiting, distant members, churches are embracing e- services, a development that comes with positive and negative consequences, reports Sunday Oguntola

FELIX Chukwuma works overnight every Saturday. He returns early Sunday mornings, exhausted and tired. A committed Christian from childhood, he misses being in church for fellowship. For years, he battled with his inability to attend Sunday services.

But not anymore; he hit on the way out some six months ago. Once he catches a little sleep on arrival every Sunday morning, he logs on to the website of Daystar Christian Centre Lagos for live streaming of services.

“I attend the third and fourth services at the comfort of my home. And I bet I do not miss out on anything at all. It is as good as being there,” he explains. He is one of the growing vast army of e-church (electronic church) members in Nigeria. These are invisible, committed members who attend church services right in their bedrooms. Their smart phones, Ipad and other electronic gadgets allow them to be so far away, yet so close by.

The tyranny of time and busy schedules has turned most of them into distant, e-members. But what they miss in physical presence, they make up for online. Philip Olawale works mostly offshore in the oil sector. Attending church is totally out of the question for him, he stated. Most Sundays, he is either on the sea or berthing after a tedious work.

Like Chukwuma, he simply joins the online service of The Wisdom Place, a new, thriving assembly in oil-rich Port-Harcourt. “The online service is just perfect for me,” he said. “As soon as I can squeeze time out, I just join the people of God on my smartphone and I have always been blessed.”

The rise of electronic worship

Olawale even participates in the offering session. “All I do is to log on with my visa card and pay whatever I have to as offering and tithes through quick teller,” he reveals. That way, he says he partakes of the blessings attached to paying tithes. Whether he is abroad or away, he says he attends services even much more than those in the church auditorium.

Investigations revealed that most churches with e-services rake in more tithes and offering from e-members than those in the auditorium. A source in the IT department of a leading Pentecostal church in Lagos said: “The truth is most e-members have more money to pay. They are always the upwardly mobile members with no time to show up in church. So, they make money and pay more tithes.

“Also, some members who attend services physically feel safer and more protected paying tithes online. Their identities are only known to core IT staff and they don’t feel under pressure or exposed to those who will be pestering them for assistance.”

On how it has been as an e-church member, Chukwuma says it’s being enthralling. “All the guilt and bitterness I used to have for missing services have disappeared. I get as much blessed as those in the auditorium.”

Mindful of the goldmines available in e-services, investigations revealed many churches have gone online. They now stream live proceeding for members who, for one reason or the other, cannot make it physically. Wisdom Osiri, the senior pastor of The Wisdom Place Church Port-Harcourt, said e-services is a contemporary way of taking the gospel to those outside the four walls of the church.

“Jesus went where people were. Since there are members online, a church that wants to remain at the cutting edge must go there. We stream online and it’s been incredible the results we have recorded,” he shares. Aside from swelling membership, the opportunity to rake in more revenues is also one many churches are not willing to let pass them.

Olawale and Chukwuma said the platform to be part of a church while many kilometers away are such an incredible plus. Without such opportunity, they are convinced they would have lost their faith and become lukewarm. Some churches also have facilities to record services that members can access later online for viewing. There is also podcast, which enables short broadcasts to be shared with online and Blackberry contacts.

Most church leaders have functional Twitter handles where they share upcoming events and update members with spiritual insights. These handles boost mass followership, with many of them having to be verified to fight off fake accounts. There are also e-devotionals where daily spiritual nuggets are posted for the nourishment of members.

Copies of sermon notes are shared online for members to have a grasp of messages they probably miss. With these online presence, many churches are becoming more IT-compliant, a development that exposes them to unintended challenges.

The pains

But not all that glitters is gold. E-church comes with a lot of baggage. In an era of scammers and cyber hackers, many churches are getting more and more vulnerable. Recently, some scammers created Facebook pages for senior pastor of Daystar Christian Centre, Sam Adeyemi. They started using the pages to solicit for donation, a development that the church quickly arrested by issuing a disclaimer.

Most church IT workers, who spoke with our correspondent, lamented that many hacking activities have been recorded in their official websites and social media platforms. Most people have fallen victim to the devices of scammers, further denting the image of the church. Besides, many church leaders believe the resort to e-church might breed an army of lazy Christians, who stay away from services at the slightest opportunity.

Church Growth consultant, Dr Francis Akin-John, believes technology can be a blessing as well as a distraction to churches and Christians. “Yes, they boost membership but we must be careful otherwise our churches will soon be empty in the name of e-service. You cannot compare the physical assembly of believers with online platforms.

“When we meet physically, there is a kind of warmth we generate. We can truly know ourselves and minister better. How do you know what challenges an e-member is going through? Can you even vouch for such a member you probably have never met? Nothing, not even technology, such take the place of meeting together as Christians,” he argues.

He also frowns at the tendency of members to stay away from church because they can connect online. “I know we want everything delivered to our doorsteps but I am at a loss as to how an e-member can truly grow. When you don’t mix with others, how can you know who you are? We are breeding loners in the faith and this could boomerang.”

There is also the increasing cost of maintaining functional streaming sites. Investigations revealed that churches spend a good fortune on software that enables them transmit live videos. Maintaining the IT department, it was also gathered, is coming at a huge cost, considering the expertise involved. Even then, the low rate internet penetration in the country makes viewing more of a nightmare for many e-members. Those who spoke with our correspondent admitted streamed videos fluctuate much to their discomfort.

Because the online world is full of the good, bad and the ugly, churches are also becoming increasingly vulnerable. Recently, members of the IT department of a church were scandalised to find that the website had been bombarded with nude pictures. Thoroughly embarrassed, the church had no choice but to shut down the website despite its popularity.

But for now, the trend keeps catching on with churches battling the challenges. While the church keeps marching on, scammers and con artists are also struggling to catch up. It is a double-edged sword that saves and also bites.